Wild Folk Natural Shiraz 2025: Tasting Notes

WINE STYLE → Plush & Velvety

Wild Folk Natural Shiraz 2025 is a generous Barossa red filled with blackberry, blueberry and ripe black plum, lifted by florals and warm pepper spice. The palate has satisfying weight and richness, but polished tannins and balanced acidity keep it composed rather than heavy. Wild fermentation, stainless-steel maturation and no added preservatives give the wine a direct, vivid expression of Shiraz, with very little cellar make-up between the fruit and the glass.

Highlights

• Vegan suitable and No Added Preservative
• Crafted by Wild Folk — a minimal-intervention range focused on wild-fermented, unfined and unfiltered wines
• Blackberry, blueberry, black plum, florals and warm pepper spice
• Old-vine Barossa Valley Shiraz
• Wild yeast fermented, unfined and unfiltered
• 14.0% ABV

Tasting Notes

Deep ruby with youthful purple tones, this Shiraz opens with richly expressed blackberry, blueberry and black plum. Floral notes bring lift, while cracked black pepper and warm spice add classic Shiraz detail. The palate is full-bodied and generous, with a plump core of dark fruit supported by polished tannins and balanced acidity. There is richness here, but the absence of obvious oak keeps the fruit vivid and the savoury detail clear. The finish is long and velvety, carrying dark berries, pepper and gentle earthy spice.

Winemaking

The Shiraz is fermented with wild yeast using a deliberately minimal-intervention approach. The wine is unfined and unfiltered, with no added sulphites, allowing the fruit and natural texture of the wine to remain front and centre. Stainless-steel maturation rather than obvious oak keeps the blackberry, plum and spice characters vivid and preserves the wine’s youthful freshness.

Vineyard & Vintage

The fruit comes from old Shiraz vines in the Barossa, one of Australia’s benchmark regions for the variety. Warm growing conditions give Shiraz its dark-fruited generosity, while careful picking and minimal handling retain freshness and aromatic lift. The 2025 release combines classic Barossa depth with a brighter, less oak-driven expression of the region.

Why We Love It

This has the richness people look for in Barossa Shiraz without covering the fruit in sweet oak or excessive winemaking polish. Blackberry, plum and spice come wrapped in velvety tannins, while floral lift and balanced acidity stop the wine becoming cumbersome. It is generous enough for a winter dinner or barbecue, yet remains vivid and energetic in the glass.

Food Pairing

The dark fruit, pepper spice and generous texture suit food with char, slow-cooked richness or earthy savoury flavours. Protein works beautifully with the tannins, while smoky and Middle Eastern spices echo the wine’s peppery side.

Try matching this wine with →

• Harissa lamb shoulder with chickpeas — Find a Recipe
• Charred eggplant with tahini and spiced lentils — Find a Recipe
• Smoky beef short ribs — Find a Recipe

Mood or occasion to match this wine…

Bring this out when dinner involves glowing coals, slow cooking or a table full of bold savoury dishes. A warming, generous red for cooler evenings, relaxed gatherings and anyone who believes barbecue season never really ends.

Cellaring

This wine is made to show vivid fruit and generous texture in its youth. Enjoy now or cellar for approximately three to five years under cool, stable conditions. Once opened, reseal the bottle, refrigerate it and drink within one to two days, as wines made without added preservatives can evolve more quickly after exposure to air.

Producer

Wild Folk is a minimal-intervention wine range produced by Fourth Wave Wine, sourcing varieties from Australian regions particularly well suited to them. For Shiraz, that means the Barossa, where established old vines and warm conditions naturally produce deeply coloured, generously flavoured fruit. The Wild Folk philosophy is deliberately simple: let the vineyard and variety do the talking. Wines are fermented with wild yeast and made with minimal additions, then bottled unfined and unfiltered. This Shiraz is made without added sulphites, keeping its blackberry and plum fruit vivid while allowing the pepper, floral and savoury characters of Barossa Shiraz to remain clearly defined.

Related Wines To Try →

Explore these natural and preservative-free reds for different expressions of bright fruit, savoury character and minimal-intervention winemaking:

• Lighter and more fragrant, with cherry, cranberry and satiny tannins — Wild Folk Natural Pinot Noir
• Certified biodynamic Barossa Shiraz with dark fruit, violets and natural tannins — Kalleske Zeitgeist Shiraz
• Savoury preservative-free Shiraz with dark berries and pepper spice — Temple Bruer Preservative Free Shiraz

FAQ

What does Wild Folk Natural Shiraz 2025 taste like?

It has generous blackberry, blueberry and black-plum flavours with floral lift, cracked pepper and warm spice. The palate is full-bodied and velvety, with polished tannins, balanced acidity and a long dark-fruited finish.

Is this Shiraz dry or sweet?

This is a dry red wine. Its ripe Barossa fruit brings plenty of richness, but the wine finishes savoury and structured rather than sweet.

How full-bodied and tannic is it?

Wild Folk Natural Shiraz is full-bodied, with excellent fruit weight and a plump central palate. The tannins are polished and velvety rather than hard or aggressively drying, giving the wine richness with an approachable texture.

What temperature and glassware suit this wine?

Serve it at approximately 16–18°C in a large red-wine or Shiraz glass. A generous bowl gives the dark fruit, florals and pepper spice room to open while keeping the alcohol and tannins balanced.

Should Wild Folk Natural Shiraz be decanted?

A short decant of around 20–30 minutes will help the floral, peppery and savoury notes emerge from beneath the rich fruit. Avoid leaving it exposed for several hours because the wine is made without added preservatives.

Does this wine contain preservatives or sulphites?

This is a No Added Preservative wine, with no sulphur dioxide deliberately added during production. Small amounts of sulphites can occur naturally during fermentation even when none are added by the winemaker.

Is Wild Folk Natural Shiraz vegan friendly?

Yes, the wine is vegan suitable. It is also bottled unfined and unfiltered, consistent with Wild Folk’s minimal-intervention approach.

What food pairs best with this Barossa Shiraz?

Try it with barbecue beef, slow-cooked lamb, smoky sausages or peppered steak. Vegetarian matches include charred eggplant, mushroom pie, lentil moussaka and grilled portobello mushrooms.

Can this Shiraz be cellared?

Yes, although it is designed to be expressive and generous in its youth. Enjoy it now for its vivid dark fruit or cellar for approximately three to five years under good conditions as the fruit, spice and tannins become more integrated.

Who will love this wine?

It will appeal to drinkers who enjoy rich Australian Shiraz but prefer less obvious oak and more direct fruit and savoury detail. If you like plush Barossa Shiraz, natural reds or full-bodied wines with smooth tannins, this sits comfortably in that territory.

(SKU: FO_Shi_CV)